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Michael Roberts

Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword‘s news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor’s degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master’s degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

michaelrobertscolo@gmail.com

Murder and Pot Edibles: Group Defends Industry After Richard Kirk Sentencing

By Michael Roberts

Richard Kirk has been sentenced to thirty years in prison for murdering his wife, Kristine Kirk, nearly three years ago, shortly after he’d consumed a marijuana edible. During the hearing at which this punishment was formalized, Kirk implied that the pot candy had spurred the killing, saying, “I had no idea how it would affect me…. I’m so sorry that I became the monster that I was supposed to protect them from.” But a major cannabis business organization maintains that legal marijuana actually reduces crime instead of increasing it.

Even Michael Bennet Is Okay With Donald Trump Bombing Syria

By Michael Roberts

The bombing of the airfield in Syria has essentially muzzled members of the Colorado Congressional delegation who have been critical of Trump thus far, energized his backers and left Democratic Senator Michael Bennet searching for middle ground, as usual. In a statement, Bennet essentially validates the military response, with the minor caveat of suggesting that Trump consult with Congress, as he didn’t do in this case, if he’d like to take such action down the line.

Heroin Deaths Doubled in Four Years, New Colorado Report Says

By Michael Roberts

A disturbing new report unveiled today, April 6, by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reveals that heroin deaths in Colorado doubled in four years despite an enormous increase in seizures and arrests related to the drug over the same interval. Among the factors for the rise cited in the document, entitled “Heroin in Colorado,” is the price, which tumbled by over 60 percent during a two-year period.

FuckCoryGardner.org Is No Joke, Creator Says

By Michael Roberts

The man behind FuckCoryGardner.org, a website that’s attracted a sizable cult audience since launching on March 30, one week ago today, laughs frequently when describing his creation. But even though the name of the page and the graphics on it are funny, Denver’s Trevor Rawls makes it clear that the project is no joke.

Denver Rent: Highest-Priced Neighborhoods in April

By Michael Roberts

Rent prices in Denver and throughout the metro area are up over the past month, according to the April report from Apartment List. But while rents in specific Denver neighborhoods aren’t exactly cheap, the majority of those spotlighted in the report are actually lower than they were just over a year ago.

Inside the 2017 Denver 4/20 Rally Starring 2 Chainz

By Michael Roberts

Following a 2016 event that was postponed due to a snowstorm and finally staged a month later, the 2017 Denver 4/20 Rally is scheduled to take place on the actual date of April 20 for the first time in four years. That means it should happen on a Thursday instead of a weekend, but this timing hasn’t caused promoter Santino Walter of Civic Center Park Productions to lower his expectations for the gathering, which is centered around a free concert headlined by 2 Chainz.

Driver Who Killed Peyton Knowlton, Age Eight, Gets 150 Days in Jail

By Michael Roberts

Kyle Couch, 21, a onetime high school and college athlete who pleaded guilty to driving-related crimes in the 2015 accident that killed Longmont eight-year-old Peyton Knowles, has been sentenced to a maximum of 150 days in jail plus two years of probation. The punishment was meted out after prosecutors dropped a vehicular homicide charge that fell apart over an inability to prove that Couch was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash.

Tony Romo Coming to Denver — but Only on TV

By Michael Roberts

ESPN is reporting that longtime Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, whom the Denver Broncos have been rumored to covet for months, has decided to retire from football after thirteen years in the NFL in order to pursue a broadcasting career.

Teen Sexting Bill About Punishing Abusers, Not Victims

By Michael Roberts

Proponents of a new bill designed to combat juvenile sexting, including a University of Colorado Denver professor who literally wrote the book on the subject, believe the measure lays out proportional penalties for those who deserve them without punishing victims. In addition, the legislation allows individuals who unwittingly receive a photo that could technically constitute child pornography a way to avoid sanction, but only if they get rid of it in a finite amount of time rather than hanging on to the image.

Why It Took Cop Seconds to Bust Jessie Oliver for Killing Bobby Brown

By Michael Roberts

Jessie Oliver, 34, has been convicted of a September 2015 double shooting that killed Bobby Brown, also 34, and critically wounded a teenage girl. An arrest affidavit in the case reveals that he was arrested in near-record time because a Denver police officer just happened to be close enough the gunfire to see the scene of the crime and hear what went down.

Colorado Connections in John Oliver’s Shredding of F-ed Up Marijuana Laws

By Michael Roberts

HBO’s Last Week Tonight With John Oliver, which has become the go-to spot for what is essentially investigative comedy, devoted the lion’s share of its latest episode to a shredding of current federal marijuana laws. And among the stories Oliver used to illustrate his points were several from Colorado that Westword has covered for years.

Cole Barker and Michael Black: 11th and 12th to Die at Colorado Ski Areas in 2017

By Michael Roberts

This past Saturday, April 1, Cole Barker, a 35-year-old from Georgetown, was laid to rest in Mount Vernon, Texas, after suffering a fatal ski accident at the Loveland Ski Area. Barker died on March 24, one day before the passing of Michael Black, a 56-year-old Floridian and part-time Pagosa Springs resident, who succumbed to injuries suffered on March 21 at Wolf Creek Ski Area. They are the eleventh and twelfth people to die at a Colorado ski resort during the 2016-2017 season, which was already deadlier than 2015-2016.

Eight Shootings Near RiNo in Two Weeks, Gang Violence Rising?

By Michael Roberts

As many as eight possibly gang-related shootings have taken place near the booming RiNo area over the past two weeks or so according to Mark Ungar, president of the Whittier Neighborhood Association, including a thus-far-unsolved broad daylight gun-down near 31st and Gilpin earlier this month that resulted in serious injuries for two men.

Top Chef Wouldn’t Be Coming to State Without Incentives That Could Get Cut

By Michael Roberts

Reports that incentive money to attract film and television productions to Colorado could be a victim of budget cuts arrived in close proximity to news that this very fund had convinced producers of Bravo’s Top Chef to film the show’s upcoming fifteenth season in Colorado, specifically Denver, Boulder and Telluride. Colorado Film Commissioner Donald Zuckerman, who shared his arguments for why the incentives should be increased from their current level of $3 million (far less than in states such as New Mexico, Utah and Georgia) for a Westword post published last October, says the Top Chef deal would never have happened without this monetary lure and fears significant harm to the burgeoning local film-and-TV industry if the budget blade chops off the resource.

Ten Ways to Avoid Being Killed in an Avalanche

By Michael Roberts

In Colorado, we tend to hear about avalanches when they have fatal consequences, as was the case with a Garfield County slide caused by snow bikers in February that overtook two people, killing one of them. But at this time of year, when winter is transitioning into spring, avalanches that don’t get media attention are happening all the time, and many, if not most, of them could have deadly consequences if folks are in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Does Ken Salazar’s Rejection of Governor Run Open the Door to Mike Johnston?

By Michael Roberts

Ken Salazar, a former Colorado Senator and Secretary of the Interior under President Barack Obama, has revealed that he will not run for governor in 2018. This announcement would seem to be good news for Mike Johnston, a former state senator who is currently the best known Democrat to have announced his gubernatorial candidacy. But Johnston’s response to the development is more about saluting Salazar than celebrating this turn of events.

Where Colorado Republicans Stand on GOP’s American Health Care Act

By Michael Roberts

The American Health Care Act, the measure intended to replace Obamacare, has been the target of criticism aplenty since its introduction in part because of predictions that it would disproportionately hurt the poor and elderly in Denver and beyond. This reception, not to mention President Donald Trump’s threat to unseat any Republican who votes against the bill, has put GOP members of Congress in a difficult position, and those from Colorado have reacted with varying degrees of support and obfuscation.